Dan Savage sat down with Xtra! news in Canada in anticipation of the release of his book, American Savage, and talked about what it was like when his son came out (as straight) to Terry and him, about It Gets Better, and gave some advice to gay couples thinking of having kids: remember, that baby will one day be fifteen. Pretty much any parent who has ever had a teenager will understand that sentiment.
Also, check out the Washington Post’s review of the new book, which really gets to the heart of how “traditional” and family-oriented Dan’s advice and his outlook really are:
Similarly, the chapter “My Son Comes Out” is overtly about how stupid it is to think that homosexuality is a “lifestyle” instead of a sexual orientation people are born with, like their handedness. “Anti-gay bigots argue that being gay is a sinful choice that gay people make because our parades look like so much fun.” Underneath, however, is a love letter to the traditional family of two parents + children. The baby whom Savage and his partner adopted is now 15, opinionated and heterosexual.
In “The GGG Spot” (“good, giving and game” in bed), he takes on Maggie Gallagher, a leader in the fight against marriage equality. Gallagher claims Savage is attacking conventional structures such as monogamy and marriage, but Savage fires back: “Gallagher isn’t serious about strengthening the institution of marriage.” Rather than shaming people and encouraging them to bury their desires, Savage recommends openness and accommodation — for the sake of stable families. “When people are happy with their spouses, when their needs are being met,” he writes, “they’re less likely to cheat, less likely to divorce, and less likely to turn their children’s lives upside down.”
Indeed.
